New Stocking Rule: Cubic Inch per Gallon!

So here I have constructed a crafty little formula to cut all those "inch-per-gallon" complaints. I call it "the cubic inch per gallon rule". ;D

Step 1. Find volume of fish (length x width x height) in cubic inches.

For example, let's take a neon tetra, which for sake of simplicity is (1.5 x 0.5 x 0.4) or 0.3 inches^3.

Step 2. If the fish's length is less than 2 inches, add 0.6 to the current volume.

So 0.3 + 0.6 = 0.9 cubic inches.

Step 3. If the fish's length is over 6 inches, subtract 20 from the volume.

No change, unless you have some giant neon tetra that's auditioning for the next Jaws movie.

Step 4. There you go. Divide tank volume by fish volume. 1 cubic inch of fish per gallon. Let's see calculations for common aquarium fish:

Neon tetra: 10 gallon - 11 neons
KuhlI Loach: 20 gallon - 17 kuhlI loaches
Goldfish (comet): 40 gallon - 1 goldfish
Oscar: 82 gallons - 1 oscar
Silver arowana - 320 gallons - 1 arowana

Disclaimer: I am not responsible for any misinformation this guide might have provided you. I am not responsible for any stocking problems this guide may cause. I am not responsible for any angry Fishlore members saying that this guide is nonsense. In truth, it might very much be nonsense. Who knows?

Uh, gotta go now.

 

Mathematically finding the volume of a fish requires calculus

 

HAHAHA!!! I LOVE IT!

It's wayyy more thinking then I'm able to do, but I love it! Maybe I'll try to use it one of these days.

 

Mathematically finding the volume of a fish requires calculus

We're pretending that each fish is square-shaped. Okay? Okay? USE YOUR IMAGINATION PEOPLE!

 

I hate to burst your bubble, but this isn't new. It's been brought up before.
It's definitely more correct, however.

 

We're pretending that each fish is square-shaped. Okay? Okay? USE YOUR IMAGINATION PEOPLE!

You could find the volume of your fish by getting 2 containers. The bigger one is empty, the smaller one full to the brim. Put your fish in the smaller container and the water will spill over the side filling the empty container. The volume of water displaced from the smaller container is the volume of the fish you put in it.

 

Lol SDS, that's all right, I tried a prototype version of what I believed was similar to the old one, but then one goldfish needed a 60-80 gallon tank and an oscar about 120 gallons. So I implemented all these little rules to make it more accurate, but this whole thing is a bit of a joke, actually. I really don't want new fishkeepers looking at this and going (ok, where's my calculator). Hence the disclaimer.

Jaysee, how about fish like phoenix rasboras? The surface tension would probably just stretch a bit to make them fit.

 

Jaysee, how about fish like phoenix rasboras? The surface tension would probably just stretch a bit to make them fit.

Calculus